Pacer, can you read this? Cocker spaniel from Gilbert has 100-word reading vocabulary

Monday

Nov 19, 2012 at 12:01 AM

Joyce Parisi carefully arranged six stuffed animals in a line on the floor before taking a seat on the other side of the room.

KEITH R. STEVENSON

Joyce Parisi carefully arranged six stuffed animals in a line on the floor before taking a seat on the other side of the room.

When Pacer, her 8-year-old cocker spaniel, sat obediently at her feet, she showed him a large card with just the word "horse" written upon it in black marker.

Without a sound, the dog sprinted back across the room to the line of toys and picked out the horse before returning it to her feet.

According to Parisi, there is no trick or subterfuge: Pacer can actually read.

Pacer has been serving as a therapy dog for seven years by visiting hospitals, nursing homes, personal care homes and special-needs students at area elementary schools, impressing them with his 100-word vocabulary.

"He just makes everybody feel good. He entertains them with his reading," the Gilbert resident said.

Though Parisi has cared for dogs her whole life, she never had formal instruction in dog training. She started training Pacer to be a therapy dog when her mobility was impaired by a leg injury.

It was during this time that she and a friend happened upon an article in Whole Dog Journal explaining how service dogs were being trained to identify exit signs in order to lead their owners out of public places should the need arise.

Parisi decided to give it a try.

"I was down by my son in Flemington, N.J., and I found an old piece of cardboard, and of course I had some toys. I showed him the card and I showed him the toy and just like that he picked it up," she explained, snapping her fingers.

"How he does it we just can't figure out, but it's just a lot of fun. People get the biggest kick out of it, especially when he brings me the wrong toy. He looks at the card then drops it quick and goes to get the right one. So you actually know he's reading the card."

He isn't a one-trick dog, either.

"He also plays the piano, but a lot of dogs do that. He sings 'ow woah woah' for them," Parisi added with a laugh.

She said that Pacer really does seem to enjoy performing for his audiences, and he's not the only one.

"I enjoy what I do," Parisi said. "It gives me a purpose ... going out to places with him to see the old folks, but I tell him, 'Don't tell them that your mommy is old.'"